"I've known Ron Maestri for a very long time," Chehardy said. "He did an excellent job on the parish council."

"He's a good, decent person, the kind of person you want to see in public office."

Maestri, 69, said he visited the Gretna and Elmwood branches of the assessor's office today and that he was "in awe of what comes out of that office," referring to its massive data-crunching operation and efficiency.

"Lawrence has conducted that office with professionalism and integrity for 34 years," Maestri said. "He's got great staff. I'm not going to reinvent the wheel."

Chehardy, 57, will retire Dec. 31 as the chief evaluator of property values for taxation in Jefferson Parish, a job that his father held before him.

Together the Chehardys built a nearly half-century legacy of defending and promoting Louisiana's signature tax break, the homestead exemption, which currently shields $75,000 of property value from taxation for owner-occupied homes.

An election to replace Chehardy is set for April. A runoff, if necessary, will take place in May. The new assessor's largest looming task will be the next major parish-wide review of property values in 2012.

The chief deputy assessor automatically takes over when an assessor resigns. Chehardy

did not have a chief deputy in place when he announced his retirement in June. Chehardy

Chehardy said Maestri will preside over the office during a period of routine business, mostly involving office management, customer service and early steps in the 2012 reassessment process.

He said his staff has prepared a chronology of duties for Maestri to follow. The most notable task will be mailing out homestead exemption renewal forms.

"This is actually the more quiet time of the year, the first four or five months," Chehardy said. "My staff is a good staff."

Maestri filled in after Jennifer Sneed resigned from the 5th District seat on the Parish Council, serving from September 2008 to April 2009. Cynthia Lee-Sheng was elected as the permanent occupant of that seat.

Parish Councilman Tom Capella has announced he plans to run for assessor. Al Leone, a real estate agent and former candidate for parish president and state Senate, also says he is running. State Rep. Cameron Henry has expressed interest.